Rash of Car Break-Ins Hits UWS, Police Say

Police from the 24th Precinct are keeping a close eye on a stretch of the Upper West Side, which has seen an uptick in car break-ins. View Full Caption

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UPPER WEST SIDE — A rash of car break-ins over a weeklong period has police on high alert and warning vehicle owners to take precautions to keep their rides safe.

Police at the 24th Precinct are advising residents to be mindful of where and how they park after a series of car break-ins within seven days targeted GPS systems and other valuables.

Six break-ins, all of which involved an perpetrator breaking the window of a parked car, occurred between May 7 and May 14, between West 100th and 104th streets from Columbus Avenue to Central Park West, police said.

In three of the incidents, the victims reported a window in their car smashed and nothing missing. A Garmin GPS was stolen in two of the other break-ins, and jewelry and clothes were swiped in the last of the incidents, police said.

Det. John McDonnell of the 24th Precinct said more officers have been monitoring the area and that the precinct has been sending plain-clothes officers as well.

"Try to park in a well-lit area if you can or a place where the buildings are well lit," he said.

He also advised drivers that remove GPS systems from their cars to also wipe their dashboards of any evidence the devices were there.

The 24th Precinct typically only sees a couple of car break-ins at most over similar time periods, so they're watching the pattern closely, McDonnell added

The details of the break-ins are as follows:

► On May 7 at 6 p.m., the owner of a 2009 Toyta Rav 4 that was parked at the corner of West 102 and Central Park West reported that somene smashed a rear window of the car and stole a Garmin GPS.

► On May 8 at 11 p.m, the owner of a 2007 Jeep Cheroke parked at the corner of Manhattan Avenue and West 104th Street reported that a perpetrator smashed a rear window of the car and stole a Garmin GPS.

► On May 9 at 5 p.m., the owner of a 2013 Toyota Rav 4 parked on West 104th Street between Manhattan Avenue and Central Park West reported that the rear driver-side window of the car was smashed but nothing was stolen.

►On May 13 at 5 p.m., the owner of a 2006 Ford Explorer parked at West 100th Street and Central Park West reported that the rear passenger-side window was smashed but nothing was stolen.

►On May 14 at 8:15 a.m., the owner of a 2011 Honda Civic parked on West 100th Street at Manhattan Avenue reported that the front driver-side window was smashed and a perpetrator stole clothing and jewelry. The value of the stolen items was not disclosed.

► On May 14 at 6 p.m., the owner of a 2007 Honda parked on Central Park West at West 100th Street reported that the front passenger-side of the vehicle was smashed but nothing was stolen.

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